A video shared on TikTok by user @lalawright2 on July 6 captured Summer telling the parents directly: “Stay in your lane and in your seat.”
That wasn’t me crashing out
“I don’t care about your daughter, your child, and none of that. I paid for this one.”
The 6’2″ flyer posted his own follow-up video five days later, clarifying what really happened on board.
Speaking on TikTok (@osaacsummer), Summer said he had intentionally booked the aisle seat to fly comfortably and insisted he never planned to cause drama.”
Summer said the family took his seat without giving him any kind of warning. Instead, they tried to offer him either a window or middle seat, but he wasn’t interested in either option.
He recalled what he told the mother at that moment: “I really don’t want to take the seat from you and your child,” Then he added: “But next time, it would be the best thing to ask before taking a seat.”
Flight attendant clash
Summer said the situation got worse when a flight attendant seemed to take the family’s side. At one point, he was even accused of “being a problem.” That comment, he said, was what really set him off.
“I turned around and said, ‘Ma’am look, since you said all that, just come get my seat because that was unnecessary. That was rude.'”
He also said that someone from the flight crew told him the mother was allowed to stay in the seat because she boarded earlier. Summer was baffled by this, pointing out that seats on most flights are chosen and paid for ahead of time.
Summing it all up in his six-minute TikTok follow-up, Summer said: “Moral of the story: just give people their seats back.”
He also called out the airline, saying: “And flight attendants, just do ya job because if that was somebody in first class, y’all wouldn’t have even let them sit down.”
The internet responds: “I’d be more mad”
It didn’t take long for the video to explode online. Summer’s TikTok quickly racked up more than 2.4 million likes, with thousands of people flooding the comments in support of him. Many were upset at what they saw as growing entitlement among parents while traveling.
“I’m sick of parents feeling entitled on planes. BOOK YOUR CHILD IN THE SEAT NEXT TO YOU.” one person commented.
Another viewer pointed out: “Imagine how many people suffer from social anxiety and can’t stand up for themselves the way he did — and just keep getting taken advantage of.”
And some shared their own frustrating flight stories, like this one: “Recently had someone rearrange my entire row to accommodate him and his girlfriend. I let them plan it out, then refused to move.”
Rising tension in the skies
This latest confrontation is just one of many similar showdowns that have gone viral lately. Seat-swapping incidents have become a hot topic among travelers.
Back in late 2024, Brazilian passenger Jeniffer Castro made headlines when she sued GOL Airlines and another traveler who filmed her. She had refused to move seats for a crying child, and the resulting clip caused “consequences that affected both my personal and professional life.”
Earlier in 2023, another woman stood firm and refused to give up her first-class seat for a kid and was widely praised for it online.
As for Summer, he said the whole thing left him feeling completely drained. “It’s 12 o’clock a.m. We just want to sit down and get on a plane and go. That’s it.”
He added that only one flight attendant checked in on him after everything went down.
